'Moms' group says it's back to take fight to TN legislature

Jan. 22, 2014

Lyn Hoyt, from left, Jennifer Croslin-Smith, Anne-Marie Farmer and Chelle Baldwin are trying to defeat a proposal for school vouchers and a statewide charter authorizer. / Mark Zaleski / The Tennessean

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They’re an army of moms, and now they say they extend to Memphis, Knoxville and, of course, to Nashville, where the big policy decisions are made.

As the Tennessee General Assembly gears up for a legislative session dominated by education debates, a group of public school parents says it is mobilized to counter the push for school vouchers and a new law that would let the state approve charter school applications.

At the same time, members of the coalition, re-branded as Tennesseans Reclaiming Educational Excellence, or TREE, are out to articulate a few of their own principles: greater state funding for education, a shift from so-called “high-stakes” testing, funding prekindergarten education and ensuring that class sizes don’t grow.

“What we felt has really been missing is an independent, a parent-citizen voice that’s not beholden to anyone, that doesn’t have a vested interest other than concern for kids,” said Anne-Marie Farmer, a Nashville school parent active in the group. “This effort was borne out of a lot of unanswered questions.”

These aren’t newcomers to the legislature, though, and their presence is reflective of a larger trend in which parents from both sides are taking education fights to Capitol Hill.

A year ago, most of TREE’s founders — predominantly from Nashville, primarily but not exclusively mothers and already active advocates on social media — stormed Legislative Plaza to fight a bill that would give the state authority to approve charter schools in certain counties, including Davidson, as well as a proposal for a school voucher system. They had a different name: Standing Together for Strong Community Schools.

Intra-Republican politics derailed both measures, though prospects are better this year. But members of TREE say they aren’t just concentrated on these two bills — they want to be proponents of their values, not just critics.

“We realized that there’s a bigger picture and that we need to really expand our look into a lot of different directions,” said Lyn Hoyt, TREE president.

Leaders, who want to be “less Nashville-centric” than last year, are exploring filing for a 501(c)(4) status to bankroll their efforts. The primary goal is to “educate” citizens and lawmakers, but how they plan to do that beyond holding forums, events and hosting speakers isn’t clear.

While its intent is to be the “authentic parent voice,” TREE shares many views with Tennessee Democrats, as well as the Coalition of Large School Systems, a lobbying organization that represents the state’s four biggest school districts, including Metro Nashville Public Schools. A key ally is Metro school board member Amy Frogge, a critic of charter schools. Much frustration, meanwhile, is directed at policies pushed by Tennessee Education Commissioner Kevin Huffman.

Organizers insist, however, they aren’t taking cues from anyone.

Several other parent-led groups across Tennessee have also popped up amid big changes in education policy in Tennessee. There’s the “Momma Bears” in Memphis as well as Tennessee Parents, an anonymous effort that has flooded the email inboxes of reporters and state lawmakers in recent weeks.

And the importance of parental voices is recognized by both sides of educational debates. Sacramento-based StudentsFirst, an advocacy group that favors school choice, has expanded its grassroots effort. And the Tennessee Federation for Children, a Washington D.C.-based 501(c)4 that backs vouchers, recently teamed with the conservative Beacon Center of Tennessee to launch a new parent-led effort called “School Choice Now.”

The campaign is meant to “empower parents to send their children to schools that will help their children reach their full potentials,” its website reads.

These organizations both employed political action committees during the last election cycle to direct money to like-minded candidates. Organizers of TREE said they’re still weighing whether to do the same.

“In the bigger picture, we realize money’s not going to win this,” Hoyt said. “It’s going to be voters’ voices — people who are in the system that are speaking out. We have to win on ideas.”